The Impoverished Superpower: Perestroika And The Soviet Military Burden

These are technical essays by professional economists who, in dealing with matters such as rates of growth, investment and budgetary priorities, and the validity of official Soviet statistics, address questions of profound political significance for the Soviet regime and for East-West relations. There is reasonable and sophisticated analysis here, and a revision of common assumptions. Most of the conclusions are not at all encouraging for perestroika-even if there are major reductions in military spending. The book deserves the attention of Soviet planners and leaders as well as of those who try to penetrate these mysteries from outside.